Scientists Have Discovered a New Core in the Center of the Earth

comet In my time, there were only four layers of the Earth: the crust, the mantle, the liquid outer core, and the solid inner core Now, scientists have discovered a new and distinct layer in our planet's inner core that could help inform the evolution of Earth's magnetic field.

In a new study released this week, a pair of seismologists from the Australian National University have documented new evidence of a 400-mile-thick ball of solid metal at the center of Earth's inner core — like the smallest statue of a colossal group of Russian dolls that nest the planets.

The new layer is made of an alloy of iron and nickel, like the other parts of the core The study found that it has a different crystal structure that causes shock waves from earthquakes to bounce back through the layer at different speeds than the surrounding core.

"It's clear that the innermost core has something different from the outer layer," said Than-Soon Pham, lead author of the study We believe that atoms are the way [packed] In these two regions are slightly different.

"Researchers study the inner core to better understand Earth's magnetic field, which protects us from harmful radiation from space and helps support life on our planet Geophysicists believe that the inner core may have formed less than a billion years ago, which is relatively young on a geological time scale.

Study authors Explain The inner core grows outward by solidifying material in the liquid outer core, releasing heat and creating convection currents This convection generates the Earth's magnetic field.

Earth's inner core appears to be slowing its rotation Discovered in 1936 by Danish seismologist Inge Lehmann, the inner core makes up less than 1% of Earth's volume (Earth's center is about 4,000 miles below the surface) However, its distance below the surface and its small size make it difficult for scientists to measure it with direct measurements, so instead they study shock waves generated by earthquakes.

When a large earthquake hits, Pham said, the resulting shock waves, or seismic waves, they can bounce back and forth from one side of the Earth to the other like a ping pong ball Seismic waves travel at different speeds through the different layers of the earth, depending on their density, temperature and composition.

Like a radiologist studying a patient's internal organs, scientists use instruments known as seismometers around the world to measure these oscillations and learn about the inner workings of our Earth twenty years ago, researchers used seismograph data and suggested the existence of a fifth layer.

Since then, Pham said, the evidence for a deeper inner core "has gotten stronger over time with more and more data " But his new study goes further, analyzing unprecedented data for a seismograph.

"The discovery of this study is that we have found a new way to sample the center of Earth's inner core," Pham said He said the team has more evidence to show that "the innermost core does exist.

" In the new study, the team observed multiple earthquakes crossing the Earth's diameter — sometimes as many as five times — something the researchers have not seen "in the history of seismology," said Pham, who notes that previous studies have only documented a single rise They found that seismic waves passed through the inner core at different speeds than they passed through the surrounding core, depending on the direction of the wave.

Specifically, waves passing through the innermost core are slowed when they approach at an oblique angle to the equator In the meantime, waves passing through the inner outer core slowed down as they passed along the equator.

Pham said the speed probably varies with the direction of the wave because of a physical property known as anisotropy, which allows matter to have different properties in different directions We usually see anisotropy in wood and it is easier to cut along its grain than against it.

Pham acknowledged that the uniqueness of this inner core is subtle and not as sharp as the other layers For example, if you were to travel from the mantle to the outer core, you would go from a mostly solid to a liquid and experience different chemical compositions.

But if you travel from the innermost to the innermost core, you will see a transition in the crystalline structure, but the same alloy of iron and nickel The idea of ​​a deeper inner core has been suggested before, said geophysicist John Tarduno, who was not involved in the research, but this new data greatly strengthens the case that "there is in fact a deeper inner core with a different structure than the outer inner core .

” "The presence of this deeper inner core makes us think about how it formed," said Tarduno, a professor of geophysics at the University of Rochester The study's authors said the formation of the deeper inner core could be evidence of a "significant past global event" that triggered a change in Earth's inner core.

Tarduno, who studies how the inner core forms, has his own idea His research suggests that the formation of this innermost core could be linked to a shift in tectonic plates hundreds of millions of years ago.

Presumably, old thick slabs of oceanic crust sank until they built up at the base of the mantle, affecting how heat flowed from the core This later changed the way the inner core grew.

Tarduno said this "new analysis is exciting because it supports the case" for the plate tectonic mechanism itself said Tarduno, who published his findings last year.

Learning the origins of the inner layers of the core, Tarduno and Pham said, can help us understand more about how the magnetic field formed and, in turn, how life can survive on Earth and other planets "The formation of the inner core was very important for the establishment of a long-term habitable planet because the inner core fed the magnetic field, which acts as a magnetic shield," Tarduno said.

"Otherwise, we would have gradually lost water from the planet " Learning more about how the inner core may in turn help us learn more about how other planets may or may not be habitable.

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Learning more about how the inner core may in turn help us learn more about how other planets may or may not be habitable " "Proud social media aficionado.

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” we would have gradually lost water from the planet" Learning more about how the inner core may in turn help us learn more about how other planets may or may not be habitable.

" "Proud social media aficionado Unapologetic web savant.

Internet Guru Lifelong Music Enthusiast

Travel Specialist ”.